Young international entrepreneurs establish contacts, explore opportunities

More than 20 young entrepreneurs from 12 countries, including Djibouti, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Kenya, Malaysia and Pakistan, finished their tour of educational facilities on Monday.

The group visited well-known enterprises and institutes of higher learning across the country to exchange ideas and explore business opportunities.

It is part of the C Star program that was funded by the China Merchants Foundation, established by the State-owned China Merchants Group.

The program aims to empower the innovation and entrepreneurship of young people in Africa and around the world by leveraging China's industrial incubation and venture capital resources, enabling them to work together to promote high-quality co-construction of the Belt and Road Initiative, said Li Baian, deputy general manager of China Merchants Group.

Li said that with the upcoming Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and the continuous deepening of China-Africa cooperation, he hopes that the program will continue to grow and expand, establishing project collaborations and resource connections with more outstanding enterprises and universities both domestically and internationally.

Babagana Wakil, charge d'affaires ad interim of Nigeria's embassy in China, said today's era is shaped by the creativity, resilience, and ambition of young people, and fostering and supporting the spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship among youth is essential for national economic growth, job creation, and addressing social challenges.

He believes that the power of youth will have a profound impact on future industrial innovation and business strategies.

Kelvin Umechukwu from Nigeria said he was impressed by his experiences during the program, which has let him see China's achievements and the importance of vision, action and values.

In the future, the program will continue to provide more support for the incubation of entrepreneurial projects for international youth, further advance China-Africa cooperation and global development, according to the authorities.